Wilshere Was Not Good Enough Against Manchester United – A Closer Look

Arsenal have struggled with their midfield of late, with Aaron Ramsey, Jack Wilshere and Abou Diaby all injured, and Mathieu Flamini and Mikel Arteta both serving suspensions. However, they are still within touching distance on the top of the table and have come through their 5-1 hammering to Liverpool with a 0-0 draw with Manchester United – but it should have been more.

I go back to the midfield as it was the main battle of the evening, and surprisingly United won – as far as I am concerned anyway. It’s not been the case for most of the season though, and I think it has something to do with the poor performance of Jack Wilshere.

The England international was not at the races at all and he and Arteta were overrun by the United pairing of Cleverley and Carrick.

Wilshere’s movement looked slack and he was overpowered when on the ball, and although he was generally accurate in his passing there were times when he had the chance to cut United open if he lifted his head.

The 22-year-old failed to win a tackle and won only half of his take ons, but he also saw his one tame shot easily blocked.

It may have been because he was just back from his injury, or because of the opposition, but for me Wilshere was the worst player on the pitch.